Lincoln – Dylan Raiola, Emmett Johnson and Jacory Barney Jr. produced career-best offensive efforts, and the Blackshirts posted their first shut out since 2009, as the Nebraska football team rolled to a 68-0 win over Akron on Saturday night.
Playing in front of the 404th consecutive sellout at Memorial Stadium, the 2-0 Huskers amassed 728 yards of total offense for the eighth-best performance in school history. Nebraska totaled 494 passing yards while completing 80 percent (32-of-40) of its attempts with four touchdowns. The Big Red also pounded out 234 yards on the ground with five touchdowns on just 33 carries to average 7.1 yards per tote.
Raiola, a sophomore quarterback, threw for a career-high 364 yards on 24-of-31 passing with four touchdowns, while Johnson erupted for a career-high 140 yards on just 14 carries with two touchdowns on the ground. He added two receptions for seven yards and another touchdown for the Big Red. Johnson’s 47-yard touchdown run on the game’s opening drive started the onslaught early in the first quarter.
Barney, a sophomore receiver from Florida City, Fla., contributed a career-high 132 yards on seven receptions, while adding a career-high 87 punt return yards. He finished with a career-high 219 all-purpose yards, while his individual punt return yardage in the game was greater than Nebraska’s team total last season.
The Huskers led 9-0 at the end of the first quarter, which included a safety from freshman Kade Pietrzak to give the defense its lone points of the night. Nebraska then took complete control in the second quarter with three touchdown passes from Raiola to Johnson (4 yards), redshirt freshman Quinn Clark (33 yards) and tight end Luke Lindenmeyer (10 yards). The touchdowns for Clark and Lindenmeyer were the firsts of their NU careers.
Raiola threw his final touchdown pass of the night to Dane Key, a beautiful 12-yard throw and catch, before giving way to freshman quarterback TJ Lateef. The youngster from Compton, Calif., completed 6-of-7 passes for 128 yards to lead a back-to-back scoring drives for the Big Red in the fourth quarter. The second scoring drive was capped with Lateef’s own eight-yard touchdown run.
The Huskers also got the first career rushing touchdowns for Kwinten Ives (28 yards) and Mekhi Nelson (1 yard) late in the game to complete a dominant team performance. Nebraska finished with a 728-175 edge in total yards while four different Huskers took snaps at quarterback. Eight Huskers recorded at least one carry on the night and 14 receivers hauled in at least one catch.
The Nebraska Blackshirts recorded their first shutout since a 33-0 win over Arizona on Dec. 30, 2009. A remarkable 40 different Huskers recorded a tackle in the game, with no Husker defender notching more than three.
The Huskers will shoot for their second consecutive 3-0 start to a season when they play host to Houston Christian next Saturday in Lincoln. Kickoff at Memorial Stadium is set for 11 a.m. with live national television coverage by FS1.
Game Summary
Nebraska 68
Akron 0
Saturday, Sept. 6, 2025
Memorial Stadium (Lincoln, Neb.)
Attendance: 86,439
First Quarter (NEB, 9-0)
12:17 – Emmett Johnson 47 run (Kyle Cunanan kick), 7 plays, 77 yards, 2:39 – NEB 7-0
4:44 – TEAM Safety (Tackle by Kade Pietrzak) – NEB 9-0
Second Quarter (NEB, 33-0)
13:56 – Kyle Cunanan 35 FG, 4 plays, 4 yards, 0:50 – NEB 12-0
8:17 – Johnson 4 pass from Dylan Raiola (Cunanan kick), 8 plays, 59 yards, 3:44 – NEB 19-0
2:08 – Quinn Clark 37 pass from Raiola (Cunanan kick), 7 plays, 89 yards, 3:38 – NEB 26-0
0:46 – Luke Lindenmeyer 10 pass from Raiola (Cunanan kick), 3 plays, 31 yards, 0:55 – NEB 33-0
Third Quarter (NEB, 54-0)
10:49 – Johnson 6 run (Cunanan kick), 6 plays, 52 yards, 1:25 – NEB 40-0
5:58 – Dane Key 12 pass from Raiola (Cunanan kick), 4 plays, 78 yards, 1:30 – NEB 47-0
2:37 – Kwinten Ives 28 run (Cunanan kick), 5 plays, 74 yards, 2:21 – NEB 54-0
Fourth Quarter (NEB, 68-0)
13:01 – Mekhi Nelson 1 run (Cunanan kick), 5 plays 51 yards, 1:55 – NEB 61-0
7:31 – TJ Lateef 8 run (Cunanan kick), 4 plays, 43 yards, 1:59 – NEB 68-0
Kickoff: 6:35 p.m. (CT)
Length of Game: 3:20
